• Journal of Public Diplomacy
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.27-45
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• 2023

Citizen engagement in public diplomacy efforts has been considered important since its earliest conceptualizations in the 1960s. Since 9/11, the US government has put a strong focus on citizen engagement in promoting positive images of the US, its values and culture, suggesting that these activities would improve foreign publics views of US foreign policy. However, much of the public diplomacy scholarship has primarily focused on the state centric messaging form of public diplomacy to the neglect of interactions and relationships. In recent years, scholars have begun calling for an increased focus on nonstate actors, networks, and relational approaches to public diplomacy. Yet, there is still a strong need for empirical studies into how participants in these kinds of activities perceive them and how they affect their views. This article provides a case study of citizen-led public diplomacy between Libyan and American citizens through Facebook friendship groups and uses Facebook focus group interviews with Libyans to understand how these groups shape their views. The study finds that these kinds of activities are useful in promoting understanding and improved images of Americans and its culture. However, these activities do not improve Libyans views of US foreign policy.

• Journal of Contemporary Eastern Asia
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.94-111
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• 2018

This study examines Korea's international development volunteer program as a citizen diplomacy initiative. Informed by a cultural perspective of transmission and relational models of public diplomacy, I examine the ways in which volunteer training incorporates cultural-learning into its program. The study finds that volunteer training is largely based on an instrumentalist approach to culture that places emphasis on learning the "explicit" side of culture, such as Korean traditional dance, art, and food as a strategy to promote the country's national image. In contrast, much less covered in the training program is a relational approach to culture-learning that is guided by a reflexive understanding of the "implicit" side of culture, or the values and beliefs that guide the worldviews and behavior of both volunteers and host constituents. Whereas the value of the volunteer program as a citizen diplomacy initiative is in its potential to build relationships based on two-way engagement, its conception of culture is mostly guided by that of the transmission model of public diplomacy. Based on the findings, this study calls for an integrated approach to culture-learning in volunteer training program to move the citizen diplomacy initiative forward.

• Journal of Public Diplomacy
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.1-25
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• 2022

It is the nature of pandemics that international relations, reputation, and health become intertwined. Speculation and paranoid conspiracy narratives spread daily through tweets, state-sponsored media and public statements. The hyper-networked world of social media has created a plethora of platforms on which this struggle has played out. The interplay of national images has become a third realm for governments to consider; a realm of reputation to set beside the primary physical and secondary economic concerns. This realm of reputation includes perceptions of public policies, citizen security and the industrial capacity to supply medical devices and other elements of life. This preliminary study will set out the parameters of the reputational battle as it seems in the midst of the virus; establish a framework for thinking about virus diplomacy and consider its emerging impact on the present and future of public diplomacy.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.226-233
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• 2011

Exactly 25 years after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, 11th of March 2011 the Fukushima nuclear accident occurred in Japan and was ranked at level 7 same to the Chernobyl. A Korean and Japanese joint civil survey was conducted around Fukushima on April 13-17. The radiation survey data clearly shows a large hotspot area between 20 km and 50 km radius north and west direction from the accident reactors, with the highest radiation recorded being 55.64 ${\mu}Sv/hr$ in the air, 99.89 ${\mu}Sv/hr$ in the surface air, and 36.16 ${\mu}Sv/hr$ in a car, respectively. 3.65 ${\mu}Sv/hr$ in the air and 6.89 ${\mu}Sv/hr$ in the surface air were detected at the playground of an elementary school in Fukushima City. Spring came with full cherry blossoms in Fukushima, but it was silent spring of radiation contamination. Interviews with Fukushima nuclear refugees reveal serious problems about Japanese nuclear safety systems, such as there was no practical evacuation drill within 1-10 km and no plan at all for 10-30 km areas. Several reforms items for Korean nuclear safety system can be suggested: minimization of accident damage, clear separation of regulatory and safety bureaus with a new and independent administrating agency, community participation and agreement regarding the safety system and levels, which is the major concern of 80% Korean. To tackle threats of nuclear disaster in neighboring nations like China, a new position entitled 'Ambassador for nuclear safety diplomacy' is highly necessary. The nuclear safety of Korea should no longer be the monopoly of those nuclear engineers and limited technocrats criticized as a 'nuclear mafia'.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.93-112
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• 2014

As personal data breach reared up as a problem domestically and globally, organizations appointing chief privacy officers (CPOs) are increasing. Related Korean laws, 'Personal Data Protection Act' and 'the Act on Promotion of Information and Communication Network Utilization and Information Protection, etc.' require personal data processing organizations to appoint CPOs. Research on the characteristics and role of CPO is called for because of the importance of CPO being emphasized. There are many researches on top management's role and their impact on organizational performance using the Upper Echelon theory. This study investigates what influence the characteristics of CPO gives on the organizational privacy performance. CPO's definition varies depending on industry, organization size, required responsibility and power. This study defines CPO as 'a person who takes responsibility for all the duties on handling the organization's privacy,' This research assumes that CPO characteristics such as role, personality and background knowledge have an influence on the organizational privacy performance. This study applies the part relevant to the upper echelon's characteristics and performance of the executives (CEOs, CIOs etc.) for CPO. First, following Mintzberg and other managerial role classification, information, strategic, and diplomacy roles are defined as the role of CPO. Second, the "Big Five" taxonomy on individual's personality was suggested in 1990. Among these five personalities, extraversion and conscientiousness are drawn as the personality characteristics of CPO. Third, advance study suggests complex knowledge of technology, law and business is necessary for CPO. Technical, legal, and business background knowledge are drawn as the background knowledge of CPO. To test this model empirically, 120 samples of data collected from CPOs of domestic organizations are used. Factor analysis is carried out and convergent validity and discriminant validity were verified using SPSS and Smart PLS, and the causal relationships between the CPO's role, personality, background knowledge and the organizational privacy performance are analyzed as well. The result of the analysis shows that CPO's diplomacy role and strategic role have significant impacts on organizational privacy performance. This reveals that CPO's active communication with other organizations is needed. Differentiated privacy policy or strategy of organizations is also important. Legal background knowledge and technical background knowledge were also found to be significant determinants to organizational privacy performance. In addition, CPOs conscientiousness has a positive impact on organizational privacy performance. The practical implication of this study is as follows: First, the research can be a yardstick for judgment when companies select CPOs and vest authority in them. Second, not only companies but also CPOs can judge what ability they should concentrate on for development of their career relevant to their job through results of this research. Cultural social value, citizen's consensus on the right to privacy, expected CPO's role will change in process of time. In future study, long-term time-series analysis based research can reveal these changes and can also offer practical implications for government and private organization's policy making on information privacy.